St. George

Born: c.280

Died: April 23, 303

Canonized: pre-Congregation

Feast Day: April 23

Patron Saint of: Boy Scouts, England, soldiers

We know with certainty very little about the life of Saint George.

As the legend goes, there was a small town in Libya called Sylene. It was in
a swamp near that city that a ferocious beast lived. The villagers were at the
mercy of this dragon and unless they kept it constantly fed, it would ravage the
town. So insatiable was the appetite of this creature, that the town's entire
livestock had eventually been depleted, leaving only the townsfolk as a food
source. The town, in fear of this creature, drew lots for the sacrifice.

A young Cappadocian knight named George was riding through Libya where he
came upon the city just when the king's daughter had drawn the unfortunate lot.
This young soldier made a deal with the king that he would slay the dragon in
exchange for the entire town's conversion to Christianity. The king was quick to
agree, not thinking that this young soldier had much of a chance; if nothing
else, it would delay the inevitable with his beloved daughter. George was good
to his word, slaying the dragon by lance. So too was the town good to their
promise, as some fifteen-thousand were baptized.

Later in life, as the legend goes, Saint George defied a Roman Emperor who
demanded that all Christian clergy make sacrifices to pagan gods. For this
public defiance, Saint George was thrown into a dungeon, tortured and martyred
around the year 304 A.D.